Rafael Clain-Martins

Aims: Mood disorders are highly prevalent among young undergraduate students and, in more severe cases, can lead to suicide. This study aimed to identify progression markers of depressive symptoms with suicide risk among undergraduate students. Methods: We conducted a cross-sectional survey of 996 undergraduates at a southern Brazilian public university. We calculated the chance of classifying individuals as 'not depressed, no suicide risk', 'depressed, no suicide risk', or 'depressed, suicide risk' according to individual characteristics using multinomial regression. Results: The prevalence of depressive symptoms and suicide risk in the sample were 38.3% and 15.7%, respectively. Severity progression markers included a history of domestic violence in childhood, non-heterosexual sexual orientation, food insecurity, enrollment in a humanities course, dissatisfaction with the course, frequent and heavy use of alcohol, and clinical levels of anxiety and stress. Conclusions: In the university context, researchers can utilize the results of this study to identify cases with an increased risk of suicide early on. In addition to screening for clinically relevant depressive symptoms, assessing the severity progression markers identified in this investigation may help prevent the worsening of cases and, ultimately, suicide itself.

Objectives: This study aimed to evaluate the association between anxiety symptoms and risk of falls in older adults residing in the district of Totos, Ayacucho, Peru, in 2022. Methods: We conducted a secondary analysis of an analytical cross-sectional study. A total of 272 community-dwelling older adults aged ≥60 years were included. Participants with severe cognitive impairment (Pfeiffer score ≥8), dependence for ambulation, or incomplete data were excluded. Anxiety symptoms were assessed using the GAD-2 scale (score≥3). Risk of falls was evaluated using the functional reach test (≤20.32 cm indicating increased risk). Crude (cPR) and adjusted prevalence ratios (aPR) with 95% confidence intervals (95%CI) were estimated using Poisson regression with robust variance. The adjusted model included sex, age, employment status, use of prescription eyeglasses, polypharmacy, frailty, and history of falls in the past year. Results: The prevalence of anxiety symptoms was 58.1% and the prevalence of risk of falls was 57.4%. In the crude analysis, older adults with anxiety symptoms had a higher prevalence of risk of falls (cPR = 1.32; 95% CI: 1.06 – 1.66; p = 0.014). After adjustment, the association was no longer statistically significant (aPR = 1.08; 95% CI: 0.86 – 1.36; p = 0.491). Conclusions: In older adults residing in a high-Andean rural district, anxiety symptoms were not significantly associated with risk of falls after adjustment for relevant covariates. These findings suggest that fall risk in high-altitude settings may be driven primarily by physical and functional factors, highlighting the importance of comprehensive geriatric assessment in rural Andean populations.

O uso nocivo de álcool é um problema de saúde pública em escala mundial, sendo os universitários considerados a população com maior padrão de consumo abusivo de álcool. Portanto, o objetivo desta pesquisa foi medir a prevalência do uso frequente e intenso de álcool e avaliar as possíveis consequências desse padrão de consumo entre estudantes universitários no sul do Brasil. Foi um estudo transversal realizado em 2019 com 996 estudantes de graduação em uma universidade pública no sul do Brasil. Foi avaliado o uso intenso de álcool através de perguntas estruturadas sugeridas pela Organização Mundial da Saúde, enquanto o risco de suicídio foi avaliado pela seção de suicídio do instrumento MINI. O uso frequente e intenso de álcool foi definido, respectivamente, como o uso de substâncias alcoólicas em 6 a 19 dias e em 20 dias ou mais nos últimos 30 dias. Foi utilizada a regressão de Poisson com ajuste de variância robusta para identificar fatores associados e possíveis consequências. A prevalência do uso frequente e intenso de álcool foi de 26,5% e 3,6%, respectivamente. O uso de drogas ilícitas e o uso inconsistente de preservativos foram possíveis consequências associadas a ambos os padrões de consumo de álcool, enquanto o risco de suicídio moderado ou severo foi associado apenas ao uso intenso de álcool. O consumo elevado de álcool é comum no contexto universitário; no entanto, pode ter consequências negativas para a saúde. Intervenções voltadas para o uso consciente do álcool podem impactar o bem-estar de toda a comunidade acadêmica.